Lions host Niners in Battle of Division Leaders

Despite not having had a winning season in well over a decade, the Detroit Lions actually has high expectations coming into this year. With the emergence of their offense led by Mathew Stafford, and the addition to Nick Fairley to what is quickly becoming a fierce defensive line, the Lions had the mark of a team on the rise. That has clearly been the case as they are one of just 2 teams without a loss this season. However, as NFL experts stand proud in their predictions of the Lions this season, they are left scratching their heads with the 5-1 start of the San Francisco 49ers.

Alex Smith has been written off at least a dozen or so times over his 7 year career, but in his defense he hasn’t had a whole lot of stability around him. He has seen 3 head coaches and a handful of offensive coordinators come and go during his tenure with the Niners, and has literally and figuratively never had a legitimate chance to get his feet under himself. Now that the hard-nosed, no nonsense, quarterback biased Jim Harbaugh is running the show, Smith looks to finally be comfortable under center. His numbers this year as extraordinary when compared to previous years. While the pasing yardage may not be comparable to that of Drew Brees or Tom Brady, his 7:1 touchdown to interception ratio and 104 passer rating indicate that the game has really slowed down for Smith. He was highly touted out of college, but has been considered one of the biggest busts in the draft due to the inability to develop into a solid NFL quarterback. It looks like that has all changed.

All of the success the Niners are having this season should actually be attributed to their ability to build a top tiered defense through the draft. Picking up DE Aldon Smith in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft was another homerun for a team that has slowly and methodically put together a “D” that is quickly becoming recognized as one of the best in the game. It all started with the selection of centerpiece Patrick Willis with the 11th selection in the 2007 draft. The San Fran defense may be currently ranked 15th in overall defense, but it’s been their ability to hold the opposition down in the red-zone that has this squad off to a 5-1 start. Only the Baltimore Ravens are allowing lest points per game than the Niners through the first 6 weeks. Detroit may be a “sexier” team at this point of the year, but if they’re not careful they could also fall victim to the surging 49ers.

NFL handicappers have the Lions listed as 4 point home favorites on Sunday, but this game has the potential to come down to the final drive. Tune in as two of the best teams in football square off in what promises to be an exciting match-up.

 

Related posts:

1. Giants take on Niners in Battle of Division Leaders
2. San Francisco vs. Tampa Bay in Battle of Division Leaders
3. Niners host Steelers in defensive Showdown
4. NFL Battle of the West: Raiders and Niners
5. Upstart Browns and Lions Battle in NFL Pre-Season

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